As the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is hardly a month away, players and fans all around the world are eagerly waiting for the upcoming season of India’s biggest money-spinner. Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) skipper, Steve Smith, seems joyful to lead the team in this year’s IPL as a dynamic leader.

Smith was banned for 12 months following his involvement in the sandpaper scandal that took place in 2018 in South Africa. However, ever since his return, he has been in a decent form. After scoring a plethora of runs in the 2019 World Cup, Steve was the highest run-scorer for Australia in the Ashes and later followed it up with a fine form in the home series against Pakistan and New Zealand, respectively.

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In the ODI series against India as well, Smith played some gritty knocks. On being asked about his return to lead RR, Smith said, “Yeah look, it’s exciting to be back leading Royals. I have had a few opportunities to lead Royals throughout and I don’t think I have actually started a year as captain before, so I am excited about that.”

He further added, “I think we have a really good squad, some quality Indian players, some terrific overseas players and I think we have got a good mix of experience and youth. I am looking forward to this year, hopefully, we can start well and build momentum throughout and hopefully be there, come finals time.”

In the absence of Smith, Ajinkya Rahane was appointed as the captain of the Royals in IPL 2018. However, Rajasthan had a forgettable outing last season and finished seventh out of the eight teams that participated. Previously, under the leadership of Rahane, the team won only five matches out of the 14 matches that they played and suffered miserable losses in the eight games.

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Royals will be commencing their IPL campaign this year against last year’s finalists, Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on April 02 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.